Roma Beyond Borders + Smokey Mountain: Nigel Dickinson

The work of Nigel Dickinson, a London- and Paris-based photojournalist, will be featured with work from two projects. The Roma, a people whose history is not written within one country’s borders is the subject of “Roma Beyond Borders.” The Roma originated from India, traversing Asia as the Ottoman Empire pushed towards Europe's frontiers. Enslaved by monasteries in Romania, many were later deported to the Americas. Their story is about diaspora, migration, persecution and ethnic cleansing. Sedentary or nomadic, they have a strong identity, with a rich and vibrant culture. They can be extravagant and ostentatious, though some in too many places, live in abject poverty.

The other selection is from Dickinson’s “Smokey Mountain” project. “Smokey Mountain” is a rubbish dump, which started as a landfill site 60 years ago on the outskirts Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh; the grey cloud of acrid smoke exuding from constantly burning garbage gives it its nickname. 24 hours at day or night, some 2,000 casual workers, including 600 children, scavenge the dumpsite, collecting plastic bags, metal, plastics and paper for recycling. People work, eat and sleep amidst the rubbish and its constant fumes, earning about $1 per day. The place is notorious for pollution, crime and disease, and medical waste is a constant hazard.

Nigel Dickinson's exhibition “Roma Beyond Borders + Smokey Mountain” was made possible with the support of Innova Art Ltd (USA).